Episode 21 – The Darkness of Roland ローランドの闇 (roorando no yami)
Apparently, this episode crammed the contents of an entire novel of the original source material into one episode. Considering how much they crammed in, I think it actually turned out rather decent. The part where Sion was starting to go insane definitely felt a little out of pace, perhaps due to some skipped character development or something, but besides that, this episode did a nice job of building up much of the background info. There were a lot of politics involved this time around, but you can seriously start seeing how everything is interconnected with each other. With only a few episodes left in this show, this is definitely a good sign.
There were a bunch of separate plotlines ongoing in this episode, with focuses on Ryner and Sion, Milk and Luke, Claugh and the princess, and Ryner with his father. Each of their stories provide a different perspective on the situation around them, some on the suspicious, ominous activities in Roland. There seems to be quite a bit of power struggles ongoing within the political elite, with Sion’s almost ghastly state definitely not improving things. Ryner’s actions before (when he attempted to leave Sion and Ferris behind) really twisted Sion’s personality quite a bit, and we’re starting to see the side effects of it all. He seriously seems like he’s gone insane, which pleases Froaude quite a bit apparently.
The situation with Milk and Luke provided some insight to what was going on amongst normal people in Roland; There were assassinations and deaths going around, which is indicative of something major brewing in Roland.
The biggest twist this episode, though, was the first appearance of Ryner’s father since the flashback back a few weeks ago. What puzzles me is that, considering how old he must be, he looks rather young. What threw me off even more was how Ryner’s father decides to stab Ryner straight into his torso, probably near his heart. Not much family love, eh?
This episode’s buildup provided some great info about future events and occurrences, but what’s really grabbed my attention was the presence of Ryner’s father. Why is it that he suddenly appeared out of nowhere, as well as why he is so cooperative on everything? And why did he stab Ryner with a knife? Quite obviously, there’s still a lot to be answered (which I’m expecting within the next few weeks), but it looks like Ferris will be getting worked up next week over Ryner’s stabbing (if the preview is indicative of anything, at least).
Overall Enjoyment: 3.9/5
Screenshots are later in the post.